This invention generally relates to remote-controlled toys, and more particularly to remote-controlled toy skateboards.
The sport of skateboarding has become increasingly popular as a recreational activity for persons of ordinary skill levels, and as a competitive sport for persons with extraordinary skill levels together with its attendant entertainment value for spectators. As a consequence, various types of toy skateboards have been proposed. Such skateboards range from simple wind-up toy skateboards with mounted figurines, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,836,819 issued to Oishi et al., to more advanced radio-controlled toy skateboards with figurines that can be controlled in some degree to portray body movement during skateboarding maneuvers and stunts, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,074,271 issued to Derrah. The skateboard disclosed by Derrah includes movable battery packs, changeable motor positions, and interchangeable wheel weights to provide different centers of balance for adjusting the performance of various maneuvers. The adjustment of such parts can be time-consuming and lead to unpredictable performance. In addition, although the Derrah skateboard includes a drive mechanism, no steering mechanism is provided. Thus, the skateboard is only maneuverable through body movement of the figurine, as in an actual skateboard, and therefore control of the skateboard may be less than desirable, especially for those of less advanced skill levels. Although skateboards of this nature can provide a challenging environment to those of more advanced operating skills, there remains a need to accommodate persons of various skill levels so that immediate enjoyment of the remote controlled skateboard device can be realized.
According to the invention, a remote-controlled toy skateboard device comprises a skateboard with a deck and front and rear truck assemblies pivotally connected to the deck. A steering mechanism is operably connected to one of the front and rear truck assemblies. The steering mechanism comprises an electrically operated actuator connected to one of the deck and the one truck assembly with a first rotary output connected to the other of the deck and the one truck assembly to tilt the deck with respect to at least the one of the front and rear truck assemblies to thereby steer the skateboard. An on-board control unit is operably coupled with the steering mechanism to remotely control movement of the first rotary output, and thus tilt between the deck and at least the one truck assembly.
Further according to the invention, a remote-controlled toy skateboard device comprises a skateboard with a deck and front and rear truck assemblies connected to the deck. A toy figure has a lower body portion that is fixedly connected to the deck and an upper body portion that is connected for rotation with respect to the lower body portion. A first drive mechanism has a first rotary output that is operably connected to the upper body portion of the toy figure for rotating the upper body portion with respect to the lower body portion. A first feedback mechanism is operably associated with at least the first drive mechanism to determine a plurality of rotational positions of the upper body portion with respect to the lower body portion. An on-board control unit is operably associated with the first drive mechanism and has a signal receiver to receive control signals from a source remote from the device and a controller to remotely control movement of the rotary output in response to the signals, and thus movement of the upper body portion, to the plurality of rotational positions.